Five Days Left To Live
by EnderMagic979
Summary: If you had five days left to live, what would you do? Shadow doesn't know, but he's going to have to find out. Rated T just in case.


**Hi there!**

**Yes, I am still alive! Yay! I'm currently working on a big Sonic fic, but for now I felt like doing some random depressing stuff, so voilà! A whole fic about Shadow dying!**

**Shadow: I thought I was your favourite character!**

**You are! That's why I'm giving you all the attention!**

**Shadow: I hate you…**

**Aw, you love me really :) Anyway, enjoy the story!**

**-EnderMagic979**

**Five Days Left To Live**

**Chapter 1: Five Days Left: Part I**

"What?!" Shadow stared, not quite taking it in.

"Gerald… he designed you with an expiry date… it says so here:" Tails began reading the information again. "'I do not wish to curse my creation with immortality, having to see his friends and… family die of old age whilst he lives on in the body of a fifteen year old, therefore I have given a date when his body shall shut down. The chosen date is 12th October 2014, 55 years from now.'"

"Th-That's in five days…" Sonic stuttered, gazing at the Ultimate Lifeform.

"It is possible that the pain you've been experiencing today is a side effect of… you know…"

"Dying." Shadow finished for the young kit, his voice steady but with a hint of fear creeping in.

"Tails, can't you do something? You're a genius, you can solve this, right?" Sonic smiled at his best friend, but the fox shook his head.

"Professor Gerald was far more of a genius than me, it would take me months to understand his workings, and even if I could, Shadow's Black Arms genes are far too complicated for me…" Tails looked at the floor, ashamed.

"Oh…" Sonic shuffled uncomfortably. An awkward silence drifted across the room where the three mobians sat on Tails's sofa, only broken by a mumble of "Well I guess I'll be going then." as Shadow stood up, his tone so casual that it was as though he had just discovered his goldfish was dying rather than himself.

"What?" Sonic grabbed his arm. "You're just gonna leave?"

"Well, yes…"

"But-!"

"Sonic, let him be for a bit, okay?" Tails said to his brother, and added, after the ebony hedgehog had left, "He probably just wants some time alone to let all this sink in."

"Okay…" Sonic stared at the place where Shadow had sat just a few minutes ago. "It's hard to believe that he could really be gone in just five days…"

* * *

"Shadow! Where are you? God this place is a mess, I hope you're gonna clear all this up!" Rouge shouted as the burst through the door of Club Rouge. Shadow didn't own a house, so was currently lodging at Rouge's place. The snow-white bat dumped the bag of newly stole- I mean _bought _jewellery on the kitchen counter and cat-walked up the stairs.

"There you are!" she smiled as she caught sight of the hedgehog, staring out of the living-room window. His eyes were fixed on nothing in particular; he just stood, glaring at the world outside. When he didn't react, she sighed and playfully tapped him on the shoulder.

"Hello? Earth to Ultimate Lifeform? You alive there?"

"Barely." came the rough reply.

"Huh?" Rouge questioned, but Shadow simply shook his head and mumbled "Never mind." The treasure hunter sat down on the sofa and attempted (and failed) at starting up a conversation with said hedgehog.

"So, how's your day been?"

"Okay."

"Have you been trying to telekinetically destroy my window with your angry glowering all day?"

"No."

"Well what else did you do then?"

"Stuff."

"What sort of stuff?"

"Just stuff, okay?!"

"Oh my god, you are so hard to chat to!" Rouge moaned, rolling her eyes. She grabbed a magazine and absentmindedly flicked through it, silently judging the clothes and models in it. She stopped at a page displaying two mobian girls, one in a tight black dress and a leather jacket, the other wearing a short, strapless beach top and denim shorts.

"Hey Shads, which of these do you think would suit me the best?" she held up the magazine for Shadow to see.

"How the hell should I know?" the Ultimate Lifeform snapped back, his crimson eyes flashing with anger.

"Okay, it was just a question! Why are you so pissed off today?!" Rouge sauntered towards the door, looking back at Shadow to glare at him, but stopped. The windowsill was glistening with tears, shining like gems. "Oh Shadow…" She walked back over to him, placing her hand on his shoulder. "What really happened today?"

"Rouge…" Shadow looked at the closest thing he had for a friend, suddenly feeling a pang of pain. He didn't want to leave her, and everyone else he knew, with the grief he'd been suffering for years. _I should tell her… Pain is far more bearable when you're prepared for it._

"Rouge, I'm dying."

"What?" Rouge frowned, confused.

And so Shadow explained. He explained how he'd been feeling pain in his arm, so he went to ask Tails if he knew any primitive earth tablets that could help, so the fox kid did a quick scan and discovered that his body was shutting down. He told her how he and Sonic had broken into Eggman's base and stolen files about his self that Gerald had made, and how they'd found the Gerald had given him a death date.

"Oh…" was all Rouge could say after Shadow's explanation. "Shads, that's… I'm sorry…"

"Yeah. It sucks."

"How long will it take?"

"Five days…"

"Five days?! Oh my god…" Rouge gasped, her eyes wide with sympathy and sadness. Biting her lip, she asked Shadow "Have you told the others?"

"Not yet. I don't really know how to. I mean, it's not like I can just waltz in there and say "Hey, I'm gonna die in less than a week!""

Rouge smiled sadly, tears blurring her vision. "Would you like me to do it?"

"If you're okay with that…"

"Sure… I'm gonna go see Sonic and Tails." Rouge said, deciding to give Shadow a little bit of space. "I'll be back in a bit, kay?"

"Um, yeah…" Shadow mumbled, before going back to staring out the window.

* * *

**So, that's the first chapter! Usually the chapters will all be one day, but the first day is split into two, because if I make the first chapter really long then I'll have to make the rest really long to! (Yeah, I'm really lazy :P ) Btw, I know the body doesn't age in stasis, but I'm just gonna say that it does in dodgy GUN stasis tubes for the sake of this story. Oh, and I'm quite a slow updater, so please don't expect the next chapter to be up too soon.**

**Please fave and review and all that jazz! Shadow wants you to!**

**Shadow: What? No I-**

**Shh, yes you do, or I'll kill you sooner in the story.**

**Shadow: Damn. You.**

**Damn you too! Thanks for reading!**

**Chaos… CONTROL! **

**-EnderMagic979**


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